artlover

I'm a confirmed "Spain addict"--love that country, have been there several times, and plan on going again and again, but I keep wondering, we're so close to Portugal--maybe we should combine it on our next trip.

Would love to hear from people who have been to both countries and hear how you feel the two compare.

Thanks so much for any insights you can give on this subject.

NEDSIRELAND

I love both countries. Unfortunately, I'm not as fluent in Portuguese as I am in Castellano; and the Portuguese don't like to be addressed in the latter. Most young people in Portugal speak some English.

I'm not your typical 'beach bunny' type who heads to the Algarve. I like Portugal's cities: Lisbon, Coimbra, Porto. The food and wine are great: lots of seafood.

In a region called Mealhada I dined on the best roast suckling pig I've found anywhere (incl. Botin's & Segovia).

Lisbon is one of the world's great cities! The port/approach to Lisbon is in a Class with Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco and Hong Kong.

Nikki

Last summer I took a trip to Barcelona, Ibiza, Madrid and Lisbon. It was interesting and fun to compare the three cultures: Catalan, Spanish and Portuguese.

Arriving in Lisbon, our last stop, it was obvious immediately in the airport that we were in a different country. I don't know how to explain the difference we sensed between the Spanish and the Portuguese people, but the entire atmosphere felt different.

I do know that our interactions with people in Lisbon (especially taxi drivers!) were far more colorful than they had been anywhere in Spain.

Trying to learn a few phrases in each language was confusing for me, as they are so similar to each other as well as to French and Italian, which I understand better. So the wrong words would keep popping out when I tried to speak. But I found it easier to communicate in Portugal, since the people who did not speak English well frequently did speak French. As I was told by a doctor I went to in Lisbon, people of my generation studied French in school, while younger people have studied English. So there was usually a language in which I could communicate, which was not always the case in Spain.

For a small country entirely surrounded by a much larger country, Portugal seemed to be surprisingly full of unique qualities in its language, food, music, and architecture.

And while I said after my trip that I loved Spain and Portugal but would never return in the summer, I find myself flying back to Lisbon the day after tomorrow. This time I will see a little of the Portuguese countryside as well, before going on to Madrid and then to France.

teacher33

I don't know if this will help, but I have been twice to both spain and Portugal and I loved Portugal more than Spain. Was there both times in December over Christmas break. Weather was light jacket and generally sunny. Lisbon fascinated me; I enjoyed the trip through olive groves and cork tree country; a day in Cascais and Sintra were not beach lounging days but stunning in beauty.
Try it! I hope you'll like it!

omostra06

Having travelled a lot in both countries over the years i have to say that Portugal is a better country in my opinion, the people are much more friendly, the Country side is varied and interesting, The culture is rich and the food is excellent. I now live in Portugal have been here over three years now and love living here its a fantastic country. so for me Portugal is best.

isabel

I just returned from my third trip to Spain in two years - Barcelona in March 06, Seville, Granada and Cordoba this past March, and Madrid, Segovia, Salamanca and Toledo last month. Last July I spent two weeks in Portugal. Someone just asked me which country I liked better and it really is very hard to say, but I would definitly give Portugal a try if you've been to and loved Spain. As the others said, it feels like a very different country, it's not just a little piece of Spain with a different government. And while the different regions of Spain do have different flavors, Portugal is even more different. Of course Portugal and Spain are a lot more similar than say Spain and England, but you will see significant differences.

I tend to agree with the others who said the people in Portugal seem more friendly, and they certainly speak more English (those two things don't necessarily go together). I think Lisbon had more character and interest than Madrid, though I liked Madrid alot more than I thought I would. For me anyway, I don't think I could say I liked one better than the other. They are both great.

artlover

Thank you all for your comments so far. This is really helpful and gives me a real incentive to start researching Portugal more.

SonOfLusus

Portugal and Spain are very similar when it comes to topography and history, but Portugal's cities have a much more historical (and provincial) flavor than Barcelona or Madrid (that have become great metropolosis in the last one or two decades). Lisbon for example, is much more like Seville than Madrid.

I see Lisbon as one of the great "world cities". It has no major political or economic role in the world at the moment, but it is one of the great historical cities of the world. It was the capital of the first ever "global village" and with an historical vibe that Madrid or Barcelona can not match. Lisbon ranks up there with great cities like Rome, Istambul, Athens, Venice, or other cities that were major world cities in the past. Lisbon was almost completely destroyed in the Great Earthquake of 1755, but there is still plenty to see, including two World Heritage monuments from the Age of Discovery.

As for Porto, it is a very unique and charismatic city with its own flavor (and I'm not just talking about its famous wine). Stand by Cais de Gaia from across the river, and you'll see one of the most spectacular cityscapes in Europe.

In other words, as a Spain lover, try not to do a Spain vs. Portugal comparison when you're in Portugal. Appreciate and feel the place for what it is. As similar as those two countries are, they have their own flavor and comparisons prevent you from "tasting" it

Still, if you're wondering how the two Iberian capitals compare, here's a helpful blog entry:
http://www.golisbon.com/blog/2006/07...paring-lisbon/

For all that you can expect in Lisbon (and Porto or elsewhere in Portugal), see http://www.golisbon.com/

Suelynne

I'm another Portugal-lover! Perhaps I'm biased as Lisbon was my first port-of-call when I returned to Europe as an adult [having left England as a baby]. I took my husband back a few years ago and he loved Portugal too. I think the people are friendlier than the Spanish overall, and the food is arguably yummier.
I'm also more conversant with the history, particularly its colonial history, and just loved the Maritime Museum in Lisbon. My husband loved the trams in both Lisbon and Porto, and the tram museum in the latter! The train trip between Lisbon and Porto was far superior to any train trip we had in Spain in terms of comfort and interest. I agree about the language though: I was also juggling learning some Portuguese, more Spanish, as well as brushing up on Italian and French. Found the phrases for "excuse me" and "sorry" the most useful for negotiating crowded trams - and I forgot it all the moment we crossed the border. However we did find that more people spoke English than they seem to in Spain. Also, if you have Spanish [or one of the other Romance languages] you will have no trouble reading signs in museums.
One last thing: I've been blessed with beautiful weather on both visits, a clear sunny February the first time, and a very early heatwave [up into the 30s Celsius] in mid-March the second time. In fact I've had nothing but sunshine, and that may have coloured my perceptions! Do hope you go and enjoy it!

artlover

Thanks for further responses, which have been very helpful for me, and I hope for others as well.

kenderina

Well..I'm a Spaniard and a Portugal lover I've found no better form to explain it ! Though it feels different from Spain..it feels equally different as going from Andalucia to Galicia..I only know I feel like at home there

wendydear

Artlover,
Any insight into Spains coast to begin my 3 weeks exploring? Always like to decompress at the beach before sightseeing. Have 5 days budgeted for the decompress part, ha!

artlover

Wendy,
I'm not a big "beach person" so you might get better advise if you just posted this as a question, but you didn't say where on the coast you're going to be, so it's hard to say. But there're lots of beautiful places on the coast.